Rod switch



H. LEITNER Jan. 11, 1966 ROD SWITCH Filed Feb. 10, 1964 HERMANN LEITNERINVENTOR.

FIG. 4

United States Patent 3,228,505 ROD SWITH Hermann Leitner, Dusseldorf,Germany, assignor to Siemag Siegener Maschinenban G.m.b.H., Westphalia,Germany, a corporation of Germany Filed Feb. 10, 1964, Ser. No. 343,781Claims priority, application Germany, Feb. 13, 1963, S 83,799 9 Claims.((31. 193-39) This invention relates to a rod switch and, moreparticularly, to apparatus arranged to cause the rolled product of arolling mill selectively to enter one of a plurality of paths.

In the operation of a rolling mill, it is quite often necessary to causean extremely long piece of rolled product to be divided and passed to aplurality of disposal apparatus. In the rolling of rods, for instances,the rod leaves the last roll stand in extremely long lengths which aremuch greater than could be accommodated by a single ordinary reel. It isalso sometimes necessary to produce coils of rod of a weight less thanthe weight of the billet or bar from which the rod was rolled. For thesereasons, it becomes necessary sometimes to cut the rod into shorterlengths and to cause each length to pass to a specific reel. It isnormal practice to coil the entire product of a mill by the use ofseveral reels, but it is necessary that the lengths of the rod pass toone reel after another in succession and that a length be introducedagain to the first reel of a series only after the other reels of theseries have been successively used. By that time, the first reel hascoiled its length of rod, has discharged it, and is ready for anotherrod. Apparatus has been conceived and built in the past to directdivided lengths of rod to various reels but, as the speed of rollingmills increases, it becomes more and more ditficult to so direct therod. Attempts to solve the problem have been very complicated andexpensive.

The final speed of modern rod mills has today reached a speed of morethan 30 meters per second and the prospects for the future is that thisfinal speed will be increased still further. Moreover, the distancebetween the end of one rod and the beginning of the following rod mustbe kept as small as possible so that the rolling mill can be used withthe highest efficiency possible. This is required because of the largecapital investment present in modern rolling mills. The condition forsuccess in reaching this goal is that the beginning of each followingrod be guided safely into the unoccupied one of two guide pipes arrangedin side-by-side relationship.

In accordance with well-known practice, the device usually used consistsof a switch pipe which is swingable in a horizontal direction so thatits exit opening can be brought alternately in front of the inlets oftwo guide members lying side by side. The drive for the swingingmovement is so designed that the switch pipe, during the passage of therespective strips and for a short time before the passage through therear end of the rod, is pressed with an increasing control pressureagainst the rod which is running through it in the direction of theother position of swing. As soon as the rod rear end leaves the guidepipe, the pipe is pushed with a jerk into the other position. This takesplace because, for a short period of time, before the entering of thefront end of the next rod, the resistance to the control pressure hasbeen eliminated, which resistance was created by the passage of theprevious length of rod. In addition to the high manufacturing costs ofproviding for the slow rise of the control pressure, this type of devicehas a disadvantage that part of the guide tube which presses from timeto time against the rod wears very quickly. In addition, there is thepossibility that a malformed rod end can easily get jammed by thecorresponding high contact pressure which is created by the guide tubeagainst the end of the rod passing through. This often results in thebreaking of the rod and in the formation of a cobble, requiring ashutdown of the mill. These and other difficulties experienced with theprior art devices have been obviated in a novel manner by the presentinvention.

It is, therefore, an outstanding object of the invention to provide arod switch for reliably introducing successive lengths of product of arolling mill into various paths.

A further object of the present invention is the provision of a rodswitch of simple and rugged construction for introducing the front endsof lengths of rolling mill product into desired paths.

It is another object of the instant invention to provide a rod switch ofsimple and rugged construction which may be readily manufactured fromeasily obtainable ma terials by standard manufacturing processes.

It is a further object of the invention to provide a rod switch which isnot rapidly worn out by lateral pressure against the rod passing throughit.

A still further object of this invention is the provision of a rodswitch in which the danger of a cobble due to malformed rod rear end iseliminated.

With these and other objects in view, as will be apparent to thoseskilled in the art, the invention resides in the combination of partsset forth in the specification and covered by the claims appendedhereto.

The character of the invention, however, may be best understood byreference to one of its structural forms as illustrated by theaccompanying drawings in which:

FIG. 1 is a plan view of a rod switch embodying the principles of thepresent invention,

FIG. 2 is a vertical sectional view of the invention taken on the lineIIII of FIG. 1,

FIG. 3 is a vertical sectional view of the invention taken on the lineIIIIII of FIG. 2, and

FIGS. 4, 5, 6 and 7 are schematic plan views of the apparatus showingthe sequence of operation.

In general, in order to provide the advantages described above with adegree of assurance, this invention provides for the arrangement betweenthe switch pipe and the receiver of a swingable control part which iscapable of swinging relative to the switch pipe. The control part isconnected to the switch pipe by pressure devices which oppose theadjusting forces of the rod passing through it, so that, immediatelyafter a rod passes through the control guide, it will move into axialalignment with the switch pipe and will be directed toward the otherreceiver opening. The advantage of this arrangement is that the rods canpass through the guide system without interruption and can be introducedsafely into the corresponding one of the two receiver openings.

In order to keep the areas of wear in the control guide within normallimits, the guide areas of the control guide are formed in the shape ofa funnel with the enlargement in the direction of the inlet side.Preferably, the control guide is connected to the switch pipe by anelastic means which, in the preferred example, is a leaf spring. In thismanner, the switch pipe can be moved during the passage of a rod into aposition in front of the next receiver opening and to receive the nextrod. This can be done without moving the rod too far out of itsdirection of flow because the rod adapts itself to the running directionbecause of the flexible connection between the switch pipe and thecontrol guide. As soon as the end of the rod has left the control guide,it flips back to a position of alignment with the switch pipe because ofthe force of the spring, so that the next rod can enter the properreceiver opening only a fraction of a second later.

Referring first to FIGS. 1, 2, and 3, which best show the generalfeatures of the invention, the rod switch, indicated generally by thereference numeral 10, is shown as consisting of a base 11, on which aremounted a receiver 12, a switch pipe 13, and a control guide 14. Thereceiver is provided with a first opening and a second opening 16leading, respectively, to pipes 17 and 18 which, in the preferredembodiment, lead to rod reels (not shown). The forward end of the switchpipe 13 rests on a support 19 having adjustable stops 21 and 22. It isprovided with a motor 23 for bringing about swinging movement from oneextreme position to another. When it rests against the stop 22 it isdirected axially into the opening 15 of the receiver 12; when it isresting against the stop 21 it is directed toward the opening 16 of thereceiver 12. The switch pipe 13 is pivotally mounted some distancerearwardly on a vertical pivot (not shown) for horizontal motion- At theexit end, the pipe has mounted on it the control guide 14 which isswingable relative to the switch pipe 13 but only in the horizontalplane. Mounted on the exit end of the switch pipe 13 is a sleeve 24having abutments 25 and 26in which are mounted the ends of elongatedleaf springs 26 and 27. The sleeve 24 is provided adjacent the controlguide 14 with further abutments 28 and 29 which also restrain the leafsprings 26 and 27. Extending from the upper and lower parts of thecontrol guide 14 are abutments 31 and 32 to which are locked the otherends of the springs 26 and 27. The control guide 14 is separated fromthe end of the switch pipe 13 and the springs 26 and 27 constitute itssole support. Passing axially through the control guide 14 is a passage33 which, in the preferred embodiment, is a surface of revolution in theform of a cone, having its large end adjacent the switch pipe 13 and itssmall end adjacent the receiver 12.

The operation of the apparatus will now be readily understood, in viewof the above description. Let us suppose, for the purpose ofillustration, that apparatus is in the condition shown in FIG. 4 and thecontrol guide 14 is aligned with the pipe and with the left-hand opening16 in the receiver 12. The rod 34 flows in a relatively straight linethrough the elements on its way to a reel. While the rod 34 is stillpassing through the three elements, the switch pipe 12 is movedhorizontally by the motor 23 so that it is in alignment with the opening15 in the receiver 12. However, the rod 34 still passes through theswitch pipe 12, the control guide 14, and into the opening 16 of thereceiver. The rod pressure thus moves the control guide 14 so that, eventhough the larger end of the passage 33 is still in substantialalignment with the exit end of the switch pipe 12, the smaller end ofthe passage 33 is directed toward the opening 16 of the receiver, sothat, as is obvious in FIG. 5, the rod 34 passes through the elementswith a minimum of bending.

Referring to FIG. 6, it can be seen that, as soon as the rear end of therod 34 leaves the control guide 14, it is no longer constrained to bedirected toward the opening 16 and immediately snaps into alignment withthe switch pipe 13 and is directed toward the opening 15 of thereceiver. This permits the front end of the next rod 35 to pass straightinto the opening 15 of the receiver on its way to another reel.

Finally, as is evident in FIG. 7. the pressure of the rod 35 causes thecontrol guide 14 to bend, relative to the front end of the switch pipe13 when the switch pipe aligns itself with the opening 16 of thereceiver and while the rod 35 is still passing into the opening 15. Assoon as the rod 35 is passed entirely through the control guide 14, itwill snap into the position shown in FIG. 4 and the next rod will beguided directly into the opening 16 of the receiver. The cycle thenrepeats itself.

It can be seen, then, that switching of the switch pipe from onedirection to another can take place while a preceding rod length isstill flowing through it. This takes place without excessive Wear on theswitch pipe and other elements. At the same time, the apparatus is quitesimple and is not capable of being easily damaged or put out ofpperating condition.

It is obvious that miner changes may be made in the form andconstruction of the invention without departing from the material spiritthereof. It is not, however, desired to confine the invention to theexact form herein shown and described, but it is desired to include allsuch as properly come within the scope claimed.

The invention having been thus described, what is claimed as new anddesired to secure by Letters Patent is:

1. Apparatus for alternately introducing bendable rolling mill productwhich arrives one length after the other through a switch pipe andenters two receiver pipes arranged adjacent one another, wherein theswitch pipe can be directed toward one receiving pipe during the runningof the rod through the other receiver pipe,

distinguished by the fact that,

between the switch pipe and the receiving pipes is arranged a controlguide which is swingable relative to the switch pipe and is swingable bythe forces of the rod passing through them, wherein the control guide isarranged in such a Way that immediately after the termination of the rodforce the control guide adjusts itself to be directed in axial directionto the switch pipe which has already arrived in front of the nextreceiving pipe.

2. Apparatus as recited in claim 1 wherein the control guide isconnected by elastic members to the switch pipe.

3. Apparatus as recited in claim 2 wherein the control guide has apassage for rod which has a larger diameter in the direction of theinlet side.

4. A rod switch, comprising (a) a receiver having two openings locatedin closely adjacent relationship,

(b) a switch pipe having an exit end capable of move ment from a firstposition in alignment with one of the openings to a second position inalignment with the other openings,

(0) a control guide located between the switch pipe and the receiver,and

(d) resilient means connecting the control guide to the switch pipe topermit the guide to be directed toward one of the openings while theswitch pipe is moved into alignment with the other opening.

5. A rod switch, comprising (a) a receiver having two openings leadingto rod pipes located in closely adjacent relationship,

(b) a switch pipe having an exit end pivoted a substantial distance fromthe said end for swinging movement from a first position in alignmentwith one of the openings to a second position in alignment with theother opening,

(0) a tubular control guide located between the switch pipe and thereceiver, and

(d) resilient means connecting the control guide to the switch pipe topermit the guide to be directed toward one of the openings while theswitch pipe is moved into alignment with the other opening.

6. A rod switch as recited in claim 5, wherein the control guide issubstantially completely supported on the switch pipe at the said exitend.

7. A rod switch as recited in claim 5, wherein the resilient meansconsists of two leaf springs located on opposite sides of the switchpipe in the plane of swinging movement thereof.

8. A rod switch as recited in claim 5, wherein the control guide isprovided with a passage in the form of a surface of revolution having alarge diameter at the end adjacent the switch pipe and a relativelysmall diameter adjacent the receiver.

9. A rod switch as recited in claim 5, wherein the resilient means isselected of such a stiifness that the control guide is maintaineddirected toward one of the openings by a rod passing through it eventhough the switch pipe has been moved into alignment with the otheropening and so that the control guide immediately snaps into a positiondirected toward the other opening as soon as the said rod has passedthrough it.

References Cited by the Examiner UNITED STATES PATENTS 288,820 11/1883Kuhlman 19331 289,784 12/1883 Stoner 193-31 440,696 11/ 1890 Daniels193-39 464,323 12/1891 Evans 19331 CHARLES W. LANHAM, Primary Examiner.

1. APPARATUS FOR ALTERNATELY INTRODUCING BENDABLE ROLLING MILL PRODUCTWHICH ARRIVES ONE LENGTH AFTER THE OTHER THROUGH A SWITCH PIPE ANDENTERS TWO RECEIVER PIPES ARRANGED ADJACENT ONE ANOTHER, WHEREIN THESWITCH PIPE CAN BE DIRECTED TOWARD ONE RECEIVING PIPE DURING THE RUNNINGOF THE ROD THROUGH THE OTHER RECEIVER PIPE, DISTINGUISHED BY THE FACTTHAT, BETWEEN THE SWITCH PIPE AND THE RECEIVING PIPES IS ARRANGED ACONTROL GUIDE WHICH IS SWINGABLE RELATIVE TO THE SWITCH PIPE AND ISSWINGABLE BY THE FORCES OF THE ROD PASSSING THROUGH THEM, WHEREIN THECONTOL GUIDE IS ARRANGED IN SUCH A WAY THAT IMMEDIATELY AFTER THETERMINATION OF THE ROD FORCE THE CONTROL GUIDE ADJUSTS ITSELF TO BEDIRECTED IN AXIAL DIRECTION TO THE SWITCH PIPE WHICH HAS ALREADY ARRIVEDIN FRONT OF THE NEXT RECEIVING PIPE.